Firefighters on Track for
Monday Containment
at Laguna Fire
90% Contained
(Yuma, Az.)—Despite interference from local traffic and boaters,
interagency firefighters make significant progress battling the Laguna Fire
– a 751- acre wildland fire north of Yuma, Arizona. The team is today on track for full containment Monday, May 23, 2011.
The blaze began Wednesday, May 18, on the California side of the Colorado River, jumping to Arizona and tracking north along the popular recreation sites at Laguna Dam and Mittry Lake.
“We did not have any flare-ups over night and still have no injuries.
Today we are evaluating the team’s fatigue. We cannot afford firefighters
or the public to be complacent; it’s best if sportsmen would stay clear
Sunday,” Incident Commander Ron Morrison explains.
On Sunday, fire fighters are hiking in to locations where they’re
aggressively reinforcing the fireline. Bulldozers are scraping stronger
containment lines while a helicopter is dropping water on hot spots.
Fire investigators have arrived on scene. The Laguna Fire is being
investigated as human caused. Several historical sites were damaged or
destroyed and wildlife habitat was burned.
Suppressing the Laguna Fire has been a major interagency cooperative effort
including engines and crews from the Yuma’s Rural/Metro, Winterhaven, Az.
Department of Corrections, Imperial County, and Yuma Proving Grounds Fire
Departments; and crews from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Fish &
Wildlife Service, and Bureau of Land Management.
Local residents and visitors are advised to stay clear from the recreation
sites as emergency personnel continue work at the scene. Campers are
reminded that Fire Restrictions are in place that prohibit campfires,smoking, and target shooting on public lands in southern Arizona. The
restrictions will continue until conditions warrant rescinding.
For fire restriction information in Arizona and New Mexico:
Call Toll Free: 1-877-864-6985
Visit the website: www.publiclands.org/firenew
